Standing up for one’s beliefs and doing what is right can often be a challenging and expensive endeavor. A prime illustration of this is Epic Games’ battle against Apple, which has reportedly cost the company over $1 billion. Despite the significant financial strain, CEO Tim Sweeney believes that the struggle was worth it.

In a recent interview with Peter Kafka from Business Insider, Sweeney disclosed that Epic’s confrontation with Apple incurred approximately $1 billion in costs. This figure encompasses not only legal fees—over $100 million—but also substantial revenue loss. During the two years that Fortnite was available on iOS, the game generated about $300 million.

However, with Epic Games being removed from the App Store during their legal conflict, Sweeney anticipates that the estimated losses could reach hundreds of millions of dollars. Sweeney highlighted that the removal of Fortnite impacted not only the players who could have accessed the game but also their friends who might have played. This loss of potential player engagement could have created an even larger effect, possibly exceeding a billion dollars in impact for Epic.

Despite the considerable expense, Sweeney stands firm on the idea that their actions could lead to significant changes in the app ecosystem. The fight against Apple aimed to challenge the existing practices of major corporations like Apple and Google, which often benefit at developers’ expense. While an initial judgment favored Apple, it also mandated that the company allow developers to utilize their own in-app purchase channels, denying Apple a cut.

Apple’s refusal to comply led to additional legal challenges, with the latest ruling indicating that the company may face further repercussions, including a potential criminal investigation. Meanwhile, over 100,000 developers have filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple, and the company is preparing to appeal the recent judgment.